Westwood One’s Podcast Download Fall 2020 study reported listeners are listening longer. YoY more listeners say they use Spotify to access podcasts, while Apple still stays number 1.

Highlights include: 

• Podcast newcomers, listeners who started listening in the past 6 months, skew female and millennial. 
• Podcast pioneers, those who started listening 4 or more years ago, are primarily male and heavy podcast listeners. 
• YoY, there’s been a 28% increase in podcast newcomers becoming heavy podcast listeners (listen to 6 or more hours a week). This number jumped from 29% to 37% from July 2019 to July 2020. 
• 37% of listeners said they were "more likely to pay if podcasts have exclusive, original content."
• Four out of five weekly podcast listeners said they have "taken action after hearing a podcast ad."
• Download the complete study here. 

Podcast advertising yielded a $2.42 net return on adspend, Podsights reported. 

More:

• The study reported over $34.3m revenue earned in pod advertising. 
• Podsights’ Podcast Conversions Benchmark Report study measured data from October 2018 to July 2020 and used site visits as a measure of conversions. 
• The categories with the highest conversion rates were retail, personal finance, and credit card brands. 
• Embedded ads experienced an average 2.1x higher conversion rate than dynamically inserted ads.
• Download the complete report here. 

Paramount’s Jean Chi was appointed Spotify’s global head of podcast business affairs.

More: 

• The new role was likely created as the company’s value has been growing, owing to its engagement in the podcasting industry.
• Chi served at Paramount as EVP of Business Affairs, spear-heading a team that was involved in movies including “Mission Impossible 7,” “Rocketman.” and “A Quiet Place 2.” 
• This appointment comes in the wake of Spotify’s new exclusive deals, including Michelle Obama, Kim Kardashian West, and The Joe Rogan Experience (episodes missing and all). 
• Speaking of Rogan: President Trump said I do to Tim Kennedy’s tweet on having the presidential debate with Joe Biden on Rogan’s podcast. 

Chartable, the podcast analytics platform, has raised $2.25m in seed funding this year. Last year, they raised $1.5m. 

More: 

• Both years, the funding was headed by Initialized Capital. Other investors included Lukas Biewald, Naval Ravikant, Greycroft Partners, and Weekend Fund.
• Chartable told TechCrunch that it is tracking 1 billion ad impressions and pod downloads monthly.
• In addition to its original platform, the startup has also released apps to get increased clarity on ad attribution. These include SmartPromos for ad attribution across podcasts ads, SmartLink to track URLs and, SmartAds for actions on advertiser websites.

Anchor told The Verge they are recalibrating their copycat detection system. They also say they’re making it simpler for creators to report pirated shows. 

More: 

• This is in response to Podnews and creators discovering pirated podcasts on the platform. 
• How the piracy works: the copycats download the pods from a different source and reupload to Anchor with false metadata, where they appear as new podcasts that can be monetized. Since creators get paid based on number of listeners, they were especially enraged about this. 
• In August, Erika Nardini, Barstool Sports’ CEO, tweeted pictures of podcast “Call Her Daddy” copycats being hosted on Anchor. She also asked Anchor to call her back. 
• Aaron Mahnke discovered pirated versions of “American Shadows” and was not happy about it.
• In his interview with The Verge, co-founder Mike Mignano said that Anchor did not pay any of the copycats. 
   

Zach and Max, two school students from Vancouver, scored an extended interview with Neil deGrasse Tyson on their podcast “To The Max.” 

More: 

• The episode was released yesterday, listen here.
• Started as a way to pass time during the lockdown, “To The Max” has progressed from being a show about Star Wars to asking big questions in theoretical physics. 
• Neither of the hosts was expecting a response from Tyson’s team. However, remembering how Carl Sagan had made time to converse with him when he was a boy, Tyson said yes. 
• They discussed a variety of topics including how to positively use black holes and life on Mars. Incidentally, researchers say have spotted a gas that suggests there could be living organisms on Venus. 

Megyn Kelly announced the release of her indie podcast, "The Megyn Kelly Show." 

More: 

• The former Fox and NBC journalist tweeted that the show will be free of "corporate overlords" and "B.S." The first episode is set to be released on September 28. 
• Formerly of CNN and NBC, Steve Krakauer is the podcast’s executive producer.  
• "The Megyn Kelly Show" will be the showrunner of her new media venture "The Devil May Care."
• The independent media company will produce podcasts and on-demand content with Kelly's signature "tough, fair, smart perspective."
   

Peabody nominee Juleyka Lantigua-Williams is hosting "Podcasting, Seriously," a platform designed to take attendees deeper than the 101s of podcasting.

More:

• Podcasts produced by Lantigua-Williams include award-winning “70 Million,” “Latina to Latina," and “Feeling My Flo.” 
• Podcasting, Seriously’s first series is called "Sustainability, Purpose and Intentionality."

Three webinars have been scheduled in this series: 

• Alternative ways to measure your podcast’s success (that aren’t downloads!)” is on September 19 at 1 pm EDT. This session focuses on strategically creating a sustainable goal for podcasts, using alternative metrics. Register here. 
• “What does editing have to do with podcasting?” is on October 24 at 1 pm EDT. The focus of this session is editorial editing in podcasts. Register here.
• “The three essential parts of podcast interviews” is on November 14 at 1 pm EDT. This session offers the essentials of an engaging interview, be it in podcasts or other media. Register here.

Event highlights: 

• A reminder on “Aclass LatinX Voices,” a free workshop for LatinX podcasters, happening tomorrow. Register here. 
• Check out Afros & Audio’s “Inside the Black Podcaster’s Studio” tomorrow. Register here. 
• Jar Audio’s “10 Reasons Why Brands Are Embracing Podcasts” is back on Sept. 24. Register here. 
• Outlier Podfest from OutlieHQ is happening Sept. 17-18. They’re welcoming both indie talent and network giants. Prices range from $5 to $50. Register here. 
• Netherland-based Podcast Festival will be held on Sept. 18-19. This year’s theme is "Invisible."

Quick Hits: 

• Edison’s SVP, Tom Webster, shared some stats on his newsletter, from the IAB’s Podcast Upfront along with his proposed million-dollar podcast idea.
• The latest in Spotify’s growing list of original podcasts is “Living & Learning with Reba McEntire.” A new topic will be discussed each episode with two guests – one an industry expert and the other a celebrity guest. The show’s guest line-up so far includes Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda and, Queer Eye’s Karamo Brown. Listen to the trailer here. 
• Vinny Pastore of “Sopranos” fame and comedian Goumba Johnny launched “Fuhgeddaboudit with Vinny Pastore”. The first podcast is out today. 
• Stewart Thorndike launched the first episode of “Come On, Come Out,” a podcast on hilarious real-life stories of coming out. 
• Ben Stiller was the first guest on the new podcast “Star Trek The Pod Directive." He spoke about collectibles and finding fellow nerds in the fandom. Listen here.
• Check out this blog by Jar Audio on where branded podcasts feature in a marketing funnel. 
• Eric Nuzum takes us on a journey of how NPR built their first podcasts, right from ideation to execution. 
• Earplug, a UK-based PR agency focused on pod promotion launched. They offer four different packages and an array of solutions ranging from promotions support to audiograms. Request a quote or learn more here. 
• Slack is gathering industry leaders and product experts at Slack Frontiers, a free virtual conference dedicated to digital transformation.*
• Finally, have you played Podyssey’s podcast bingo yet? 

*This is sponsored content.